Bill Summary 2010[1]

8/9/2019 Bill Summary 2010[1]

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2010 Legislative Summary

Workers’ Compensation Related Legislation

Summary of HB 1611 - Effective 11/1/10

Requires claims adjusters for insurers duly authorized to transact workers’ compensation insurancein Oklahoma to be licensed under the Insurance Adjusters Licensing Act, and to complete 6 hoursof continuing education relating to the Workers’ Compensation Act as part of the required 24 hoursof continuing education.


• Amends the definition of: (1) “employee” to exclude individuals who are a party to afranchise agreement, (2) “major cause” to mean more than fifty percent (50%) of theresulting injury, disease or illness. A finding that the workplace was not a major cause of the injury shall not adversely affect exclusive remedy or create a separate cause of action

outside of Title 85, Oklahoma Statutes; and (3) “objective medical evidence” to includeobjective findings which are those that cannot come under the voluntary control of thepatient. Mentions tests and criteria pertaining to determinations of permanent impairment.

• Defines “continuing medical maintenance,” “surgery” (excludes an injection, or theforcing of fluids beneath the skin, for treatment or diagnosis), “evidence-based,”

“nationally recognized,” “scientifically based,” “peer review,” and “state-developed.” • Restricts the compensability of injuries that occur to and from work.• Excepts intentional torts from exclusive remedy. Identifies what constitutes an intentional

tort. Precludes an injured employee from maintaining an action in both the Workers’Compensation Court and another court, when the employer has failed to secure its workers’compensation obligations as required by law or in the case of an intentional tort.

• Modifies entitlement to temporary total disability. Specifies that if the treating physicianreleases a claimant to light duty work with written restrictions, the employer makes a goodfaith offer in writing to provide a light duty position at the claimant’s same rate of pay, andthe claimant rejects the light duty assignment, the claimant is not entitled to temporary totaldisability.

• Prohibits Court ordered continuing medical maintenance, unless recommended by thetreating physician when the claimant reaches maximum medical improvement, or unlessthere is clear and convincing evidence to the contrary. Authorizes the Court to appoint anindependent medical examiner at any time to determine the nature and extent of continuingmedical maintenance.

• Limits the duration of permanent total disability benefits to 15 years or until the employee

reaches the age of 100% Social Security retirement, whichever is longer. Provides that if the employee dies from causes unrelated to the work-related injury or illness, any personentitled to revive the action shall receive benefits only until the benefits would haveterminated had the employee lived. Provides that if the Court awards both permanent partialand permanent total disability, the permanent total disability award shall not be due untilafter the permanent partial disability award is paid in full.

• Establishes a new compensation schedule for permanent partial disability for injuriesoccurring on or after August 27, 2010. The minimum weekly benefit payable for permanent

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partial disability is $150. The maximum weekly benefit payable for permanent partialdisability for injuries occurring on or after August 27, 2010 through August 26, 2015 is 70%of the employee’s average weekly wage, not to exceed $323. For injuries occurring on orafter August 27, 2015, the maximum weekly benefit payable for permanent partial disabilityis 70% of the employee’s average weekly wage, not to exceed 50% of the state’s average

weekly wage.• Prohibits an award for permanent disfigurement for a part of the body for which permanentpartial disability is awarded.

• Modifies compensation for soft tissue injuries. In case of a nonsurgical soft tissue injury inwhich the employer has promptly provided medical care, temporary total disability shall notexceed 8 weeks. A Court ordered extension of up to an additional 8 weeks is authorized if the treating physician recommends one or more injections. If the treating physicianrecommends surgery, the Court may order up to an additional 16 weeks of temporary totaldisability if the treating physician indicates the extension is appropriate or the parties agree.The Court shall terminate the extension benefits if surgery is not performed within 120 daysof approval or authorization of the surgery by the respondent or Court, unless the delay is

beyond the claimant’s control. Provides that if surgery is performed, temporary totaldisability is subject to the limitations established in paragraph 2 of Section 22 of theWorkers’ Compensation Act. Expands exclusions from the definition of “soft tissue injury”to include all joint replacements.

• Makes the Physician Advisory Committee’s findings and recommendations regardingreasonable and necessary medical treatment, duration of treatment, continuing medicalmaintenance, and development of a prescription formulary binding upon the Workers’Compensation Court, unless there is clear and convincing evidence to the contrary. Courtordered medical care that deviates from the Committee’s findings and recommendationsmust be supported by specific findings. Eliminates the Committee’s duty to consider certainstandards when developing treatment guidelines.

• Creates the Task Force on Vocational Rehabilitation for Injured Workers until November30, 2010 to study methods and procedures to improve vocational rehabilitation for injuredworkers. Requires a report of findings and recommendations to legislative leaders beforetermination of the Task Force.


Modifies the number, term, appointment process and assignment of Judges of the Workers’Compensation Court. Provides that the first two judicial vacancies occurring on or after November1, 2010 will operate to reduce the number of judges comprising the Court from ten to eight. Directsthat three judges be permanently assigned to the Court’s Tulsa location and five be permanently

assigned to the Court’s Oklahoma City location. Prohibits closure of the Court’s Tulsa locationwithout legislative approval. Reduces the existing six year judicial term from July to February of the year of expiration of the term. Current incumbent judges who are not reappointed are presumedto have served a full six year term without reduction in salary, benefits or time for judicial service.Subsequent judicial terms shall be for eight years. Judges serving an unexpired term on August 27,2010 are eligible upon expiration of their respective terms for appointment to one, eight year term.Judges may seek an additional eight year term after a three year waiting period. Judicialappointments are made by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. Subjects

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incumbent judges to the Judicial Nominating Commission process. Requires the Court's judges tobe licensed to practice law in Oklahoma for not less than five years and have not less than five yearsof workers’ compensation experience prior to appointment.


Prohibits creation of a new business entity for the purpose of avoiding payment of a workers'compensation judgment.


Expands the exemption from the Workers' Compensation Act for an employer with five or less totalemployees, all of whom are related by blood or marriage, to include the spouse of the exemptemployer.

Summary of HJR 1056 - State Question No. 755, Legislative Referendum No. 355

Submits to a vote of the people at the next general election of the state a ballot measure to amendthe Oklahoma Constitution to require courts of this state, including the Workers’ CompensationCourt, to rely on federal and state laws when deciding cases and to forbid courts from looking atinternational law or Sharia Law when deciding cases.

Summary of SB 1973 - Effective 11/1/10

• Requires all Workers' Compensation Court en banc proceedings to be recorded by a courtreporter.

• Requires Court en banc orders that reverse a decision of the trial judge to contain specific

findings explaining the reversal.• Enumerates the grounds upon which an order or award of the Workers' Compensation Court

may be modified, reversed for rehearing or set aside by the Supreme Court on appeal.• Requires the Court Administrator to mail a certain notice to an injured worker upon the

filing of an Employer's First Notice of Injury (Form 2), rather than upon the filing of a claimfor compensation (Form 3) by the worker.

• Requires the claimant to be in attendance at the time of a mediation, unless all parties agree.Requires all parties to be represented during the entire mediation session by a person withfull settlement authority. Permits the assigned trial judge to impose sanctions, costs andattorney fees, for good cause, against a party that does not have full settlement authority.

• Modifies fees payable to the Workers’ Compensation Court’s revolving fund, effective

11/1/10. Increases the Court en banc appeal fee from $125 to $175. Establishes a new $100fee per appeal to the Supreme Court for preparing, assembling, indexing and transmittingthe record for appellate review. Increases the fee paid by the party against whom an awardbecomes final from $75 to $140. Increases the reopen fee from $75 to $130. Increases theapplication fee paid by group self-insureds, individual own risk employers and servicingcompanies for a permit from the Court Administrator to operate in Oklahoma from $500 to$1,000. Establishes a new self-insurance related fee that pertains to review by Workers’Compensation Court personnel of interim financial statements and/or loss runs submitted by

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a self-insured employer. The fee is $500 per review, not to exceed $1,000 per employer perfiscal year of the state. It is in addition to other fees.

Summary of SB 2054 - Effective 11/1/10

• Eliminates the Insurance Commissioner’s duty to mail a form Affidavit of Exempt Statusto requesters since posted on the Insurance Department’s web site.• Makes changes related to regulation of Professional Employer Organizations.

Summary of SJR 66

Directs the Secretary of State to remove Enrolled HJR 1041 of the 1st Session of the 52nd OklahomaLegislature from the ballot at the next general election of the state in view of enactment of HB 2652of the 2nd Session of the 52nd Oklahoma Legislature. HJR 1041 was a proposed legislativereferendum for a vote by the people to require Senate approval of a person chosen by the Governorto fill a position on the Workers’ Compensation Court. HB 2652 includes Senate confirmation of

judicial appointments to the Workers’ Compensation Court.

Bill Summary 2010[1]

Documents

Transcript of Bill Summary 2010[1]